.40 S&W (yet another caliber)

[FLINTNFIRE]

I use etr7 as it was available when I started loading 40 s&w , I look through loading manuals , compare and then start working up a load .

Length comes into play for me with what fits and chambers , have not used Unique in 40 caliber , and since I ran out I am going with other powders for the time being in calibers I used it for.

Started tumble lubing 40 s&w and am now powder coating for the Glocks , models 22 27 and 35 , fun caliber , molds I am using are MP and NOE , hollow points , 155 to 185 grain , Those police trade ins are mostly good buys .

[Jniedbalski]

I have been using HS 6 in my 40 loads. Lee mold 175 gr tc bullet.it worked good in the pistole and the carbine. I usually start at the beginning ening load and work up. I found out hs6 and the higher loads produced better accuracy. The closer I got to the top loads the group started to srink

[mvintx]

I'm about to embark on loading cast for .40 and 10mm with the Lyman 401638 and one of Miha's 165 grain molds as soon as Lathesmith's powder funnel shows up. I wish some folks would report results for that Miha 165 mold.

I picked up a couple of those police trade-in G23s and they are a great bargain.

[mozeppa]

i tried #5 powder in my .40 and found it to be too slow a burn ...too dirty and kinda under powered to cycle the gun.
so i bumped up the loads until it would cycle good, then got a new problem...because it was so dirty it clogged up the chamber enough the slide wouldn't fully close. this occurred at only 7 shots being fired.

switched to bullseye and it was better, but not great...switched again to 5.5 grains of red dot ....now it runs very good ....oh by the way , i'm pushing a 145 grain cone nose with flat base and its powder coated and no lube grooves.

[fcvan]

Unique. I lost count of how many kegs I've burned over the years. When I first started loading, Dad was buying 15 lb cardboard kegs, it never went bad as He sent me home with half of if 40 years later. When I started loading on my own I would buy 1 lb at a time, now 8.

My first pistol was a S&W 459, load was Lee 356-125 2R which cast 358 diameter. I pan lubed (until I got a sizer) and loaded it over 5 grains. Instant success. When I bought a 357, I used the same boolit, over 5 grains. Instant success. When I bought (ok, the wife bought it for me) a G22 I bought the Lee 401-175 TC, as cast 180 grains. Loaded over 5 grains of Unique. See a pattern here? If it ain't broke . . .

I ASBBPC everything these days and 40 S&W is no exception. Along the way, I have picked up a G23, G42, G43, with conversion barrels for the G22 and G23 for 9mm. I have shot the G27 as my brother has one to go with his G22 and G23, and 9mm conversion barrels. Okay, the wife has a G22, 23, 42, and 43, with conversion barrels, and a bunch of 9mm magazines for all. They shouldn't have had such a sale.

Yes, you can load more than 5 grains in the 40 S&W but I figure why bother? It isn't broken. I have used Red Dot, Bullseye, HP38/W231 and one other that escapes me. But why bother? I buy Unique in 8 lb kegs for a reason. It is the same formula/performance since 1899, I think they are on to something.

[dverna]

In my limited loading of the .40 I had good results with Longshot. It yields higher velocity than other powders at safe pressure.

Like fcvan, I got a 9mm conversion barrel and 9mm mags for my Glock 22 and run 9mm most of the time. For plinking and fun, I use 30% less lead with the 9mm so shooting a lot of .40 has not happened.

I have shelved plans to develop a cast load for it as other projects seem more important. And I may never do it. Getting three hundred XTP’s to reload for SD would be a lifetime supply at my age.

Btw, I used the Hodgdon load data to work up my .40 loads. 7.5 gr with the 180 XTP. A bit under max.

[fcvan]

"Like fcvan, I got a 9mm conversion barrel and 9mm mags for my Glock 22 . . . "

Like Don said, and more. Heck, trigger time is trigger time. My 'SWAT' sidearm became my duty weapon. We used S&W M10s until it was embarrassing. KCI (Korean military mags) are produced at a Glock Factory, just molded without the Glock logo. They were $9.95 a pair, with a cheesy nylon mag pouch, and the barrels were $99 bucks.

A good day at the range was 9mm until they were dry, 40, until they were dry, and go home. About 200 rounds/week. The main thing was, cast/load/shoot using a Lee Turret and a auto disk powder measure set at 5 grains. 9mm/38 S&W/40 S&W was a quick change. That didn't count qualifying for work and off duty.

There is no replacement for trigger time. When I was helping folks transition from revolver to semi (G22) I bought an air-soft pistol that was a G22 knock off. Same weight and trigger pull, just no real recoil. I had marginal sergeants and others who worked for me so I wanted them 'up to speed' so to speak. Nobody failed to certify with the new platform. I am still trying to get my air-soft pistol back from one of the ladies I trained. She's a shooter and uses the heck out of it in her back yard with neighbors.

I carry factory in my EDC, but carried reloads for decades. I figured the loads I qualified with should be the loads I used, I just don't like shooting 'factory.' Sure, I have read the potential horror stories of folks using 'reloads' but have yet to see a case where it was ever brought up. Heck, even the LASO trained and carried reloads for decades until the Ammo manufacturers convinced departments that 'factory reduces liability.'

Back to the OP's question, Unique is a good partner. My loads are below max, even factory, but accurate enough that I could hit a 4" target at 200 yards, off-hand. I was shooting a lot at that time (first test of PCd loads). The boolit flies straight if loaded correctly, proper hold and trigger control will launch it straight. If you become one with the gun, you can shoot a B27 out to 25 yards un-sighted, combat shooting, keeping to the basic principle of 'equal distance of bad guy on either side of the slab sided weapon, press, press, press.' Bad grip, bad target, all of those fundamental things.

[Lloyd Smale]

one of my go to 40 loads is that 175 lee tn bullet with 5.8 grains of unique. Ive shot THOUSANDS OF THEM and never had a single issue.

[Sig]

I've been loading a 170gn Mihec pill with WSF. Meters great, fairly clean & pretty darn accurate.

[prs]

I am another Unique 40S&W fan. I use the Lee TC boolit that drops close to 180 with my alloy. You work-up your own charge, I "think" mine is a bit less than 5gr. I could fill a dumpster with the unique bottles and kegs I have emptied in all sorts of loads; but Unique is not so forgiving of over charges and neither is the 40S&W. I have had no problems with it at all and no leading of either stock or aftermarket barrels in my G-23. Next to black powder, Unique has one of the best odors when shooting.

prs

[gpidaho]

I haven't seen it mentioned above but, I've had very good luck loading the 40S&W( FN Highpower and 40 carbine) with Blue Dot. Gp

[onelight]

I have used red dot , BE-86 , and Unique . All worked well with the edge to BE-86 for factory load performance .

[Dieselhorses]

Good advice everyone. Learning as I go. Seems it’s not cool to shoot reloads in a Glock factory barrel due to alien rifling and over boring the stupid chamber. Aftermarket barrel ordered. Like believing in Santa Claus until you realize he don’t exist.


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[cwlongshot]

I have been using Power Pistol. I have a few molds but recently been Concentrating on the excellent LEE 175 TC. The TL didnt work well for me. But this TC version is great!!

I have a RNFP Lyman mold I used before this and thats just as good but only a 2 cav and this lee is a 6. More is better when ya shoot allot!! .

I have a NOE 403-181 In brass for speciality. And it casts a CUP deep HP and WFN. All shoot really well. I like the cup best as the deep really opens up easily!! The FP is goodnif ya need that extra penetration.

I havetwo other Lymans a 175 & 200 TC. That 200 is a favorite. If its nose was just a bit wider I probably would be 100% with it in the 10mm!! I use that and I buy a 220 HP as cast that I PC. Its truly awe inspiring. Bullet weighs 225 and I can move it to 1200+ with Blue Dot from a 6" Bbl. It expands right to its base in wet news print at 20yards.

I like these 400's!!

CW

[Taterhead]

The Lee 175 TC is an excellent design for 40 and 10. The 2 cav was the single most awful mold I've owned. No doubt the 6 cav would be fine. lnstead I have an LBT 4 cav of a similar profile. Also excellent.

As was stated before, a full, or nearly full case of Unique (within load data maximums) is no issue. Not unlike loading Unique in 9mm.

In that burn speed, WSF has been great under this type of bullet. It meters a bit more consistently. And for all out velocity, if that suits your fancy, look no further than Longshot.

I have cast and loaded the Lee 175 TC, the 401638 and the LBT 175 TC. Seems to be a very good bullet style in the 40.

[Dieselhorses]

I guess now what I'm trying to determine is how many actually shoot cast handloads through Glock barrels? Yesterday I shot several handloads and had no issues as far as feeding, firing and hitting paper. It's the infamous "Glock Smile" that worries me. Although I examined the cases I shot and no noticeable deformities. I am aware Glock manufactured their barrels with lee way in chambers, supposedly for reliability, and disclaims that only factory ammo should be used. Heard "Redding" makes a case sizer as well as Lee for the .40 but despite returning the case size back to spec, does the case wall actually become thinner in the bulged area? Not trying to "re-invent the wheel" here, just seeing how many of us in fact shoot reloads through a Glock OEM barrel.

[44MAG#1]

My Gen 4 40 S&W has a supported barrel. What generation are you shooting. Generous chamber dimensions isn't the same as "The Smile".

[FLINTNFIRE]

The smile was early on and not just in glocks , my glocks are gen. 3 and 4 and they leave no bulges nor do any of my other 40 calibers or any other semi auto I own .

Glocks of mine only see lead , no copper jacketed pistol bullets do I buy , I cast , I coat, I load . They shoot fine.

I do not load any with a bulge or those I find in brass I bought with the smile , they are weak in that area and are a accident waiting to happen .

[ioon44]

I guess now what I'm trying to determine is how many actually shoot cast handloads through Glock barrels? Yesterday I shot several handloads and had no issues as far as feeding, firing and hitting paper. It's the infamous "Glock Smile" that worries me. Although I examined the cases I shot and no noticeable deformities. I am aware Glock manufactured their barrels with lee way in chambers, supposedly for reliability, and disclaims that only factory ammo should be used. Heard "Redding" makes a case sizer as well as Lee for the .40 but despite returning the case size back to spec, does the case wall actually become thinner in the bulged area? Not trying to "re-invent the wheel" here, just seeing how many of us in fact shoot reloads through a Glock OEM barrel.

I have been shooting cast hand loads through Glock barrels starting around 1990 both .40 S&W and 9 mm, as with shooting any cast bullet it needs to be at least .002" or more than the barrel and this means the bullet is not swagged by the case or reloading dies.

I have never had a need for a Redding case sizer for .40, if I find a case that is bulged I dump it into the scrap bucket, if a case has been stressed that much I would not trust it.

[Dieselhorses]

Looks like I have to go through a few thousand cases. Grabbed a handful of ones I hadn't decapped/resized and miked it parallel with jaws and sure enough there's as much as .010 variation.